1. Field
The field of the invention is tool organizers for use in and about residences. More particularly, the invention relates to an improved implement and supply organizer which may be used for both storage and transport of garden and lawn care tools and accessories.
2. State of the Art
Tool and implement organizers have been widely proposed for long handled implements such as rakes, shovels and brooms. Some, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,298,532, provide for inverted vertical storage of these implements with handles downward and tool heads upward. The elongate handles are inserted downwardly through openings through lids provided upon large pail-shaped containers such as trash cans. The handle ends are wedged between the walls of the can and a dome shaped structure installed in its bottom. Or, cup shaped compartments may be provided in the bottom to accept the inverted ends of the handles. A similar arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,947,998. A molded, handle-stablizing, member with numerous downwardly cupped handle accepting depressions is, again, installed in the bottom of the container. These prior art devices do not accommodate implements without elongate handles. They are also basically immobile when laden with tools, being too heavy to be easily carried, and also quite prone to toppling. When the tool laden storage devices are placed in areas of limited space, retrieval of individual implements is hampered because the devices cannot be easily rotated to place the wanted tool at hand.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,759,538 discloses a trolley-like tool organizer with four wheels. Although somewhat mobile, such devices lack sufficient compactness and maneuverability to facilitate indoor storage use in limited space areas. U.S. Pat. No. 2,596,749 discloses a device for storage of mops, brooms and buckets in upright positions. This device also has casters which provide desirable maneuverability. However, only a limited number of implements may be accommodated. Some implement carriers resemble golf carts, having a single pair of parallel, spaced apart wheels. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,778,654 and 2,835,503. Prop members are provided to immobilize these devices in desired locations. Again, maneuverability and compactness are undesirably limited. None of the prior art appears to provide for short handled tools, or tools having a pair of, rather than a single, handle, nor for miscellaneous supplies.
A need remains for a compact, maneuverable, tool and supply organizer which enables storage of a complete range of size, configuration and type of tools.